I have a S&W model 19-4 in 357 which my grandfather passed down to me. Old enough to be a pinned barrel and has a recessed cylinder for the rims of the cartridges. Stainless or nickel gun I don't know. I love this old revolver. It had to have had a trigger job done as the DA is smoother and lighter that anything else I've ever shot and the SA is literally a touch of the trigger face yet there is no problem with hammer push off. Timing is awesome as well as B/C gap. Such an awesome shooter. Overall condition would be around 75 to 80 percent probably. My questions are where I could find factory wood grips on the cheap and how much is this gun worth? (For insurance purposes, I will go to the grave with this one. )

A model 19 is carbon steel, so if its 'silver' in color it is nickel. The model 66 is the stainless version of the same gun. The 2.5" guns are valued the highest right now. The 6" are valued lowest. 4" are in the middle. Anything that has a factory barrel length tha is not 2.5", 4", or 6" is going to go for at least $100 more to the right person. With the correct grips, and if the box and paper work are included, a great shape 4" nickle would probably see a price tag of $600-$650 on the high end of reasonable. A 2.5 in the same condition might be $700-$750. A 6" would be around $550-$600. That's in nearly 100% condition. Nickel guns are funny, it depends on how the nickel has worn to the 80% you are assessing it as. If its peeled or bubbled or missing big patches then that's going to hurt the value. If there are just a few chips in the usual spots then it might not have a big effect on the value. Generally speaking, a no box 80% nickel 4", I would offer $400-$500 depending on how it looked.

Without pictures or more info on the box or anything like that, that's the best I guess I can offer.

Thanks for the help. The nickel isn't too bad. It seems like it's scuffed from carry (who would carry a six inch barrel is beyond me), just at the muzzle a little bit and on the cylinder in two spots. Very minimal. The worst looking part of the ole wheel gun is the original wood grips. They've seen their better days but are still very usable. If I get a chance tomorrow I'll try to upload some pictures of the old beast.

The wear you describe is normal and wouldn't detract too much from the value. They are fantastic guns, especially in your case where you have some sentimental value to go along with it. Cherish it, and honor your grandfather's memory by shooting it often

Grips that are original to a gun are valuable, no matter the shape they are in. Those grips are part of the gun's history and may even be numbered to it. I have an old friends service revolver, a model 58 in 41 mag,, the grips looked beaten and worn. I cleaned them with mineral spirits , twice before all the dirt and grime was removed then gave them a coat of tung oil finish. No sanding or recutting checkering , just clean and finish....every scar on them was earned on duty, it's part of it's life story so don't remove them.

As for new grips...I couldn't find any factory replacements for mine (that were affordable) so I had a set or Ahrends Retro combat (he also makes a Retro Target model) That look a lot like the old style grips S&W used to make, but with improvements to the design, perfect fit, beautiful in cocobolo, hand made and delivered to your door for $66.00. I keep the original grips for display and shoot with the Ahrend"s

Back in those times 6 inch bbl. was a popular choice for service arms.

It had to have had a trigger job done as the DA is smoother and lighter that anything else I've ever shot and the SA is literally a touch of the trigger face yet there is no problem with hammer push off.

No, actually they're all like that. I thought that about mine, until I tried someone else's 19.

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My questions are where I could find factory wood grips on the cheap

I got my S&W wood grips at a garage sale. You can't count on that, so I'd start with Ebay.

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and how much is this gun worth? (For insurance purposes, I will go to the grave with this one. )

It was your grandpa's gun. Don't sell it. Kids these days, I swear....

Mine is in similar condition. I described it to a S&W collector (who posts here occationally), and he told me $400-ish.

More if you have box, papers, etc.

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hAkron's post was right on the money - literally. My two cent's worth: The 19 is a fine piece. I don't own one, but my Uncle does. Although I'm partial to the 686 (I own three), I'd be proud to own a 19. Sturdy, and ahead of its time. Damn nice looking piece too - especially in the 4" - it just looks "right."

As far as the grips are concerned, others are correct that they are fairly valuable in and of themselves so if you decide to get a new set, keep the originals (I never understood people who throw original grips away). If you want something nice looking to put on the gun to spruce it up a bit, these are very nice and quite reasonably priced (I have a set of the N-Frame version on my M28):

Thanks for all the info. Best part is that my grandfather hasn't passed away yet and we shoot this old piece together every chance we get. If I did get new grips it would be to use while shooting. I would def keep the originals (I never throw any usable gun part away)

Lee N. Field, asked about value for insurance only, love the gun and where it came from. As I said in the OP it will go to the grave with me. But thanks for the clarification on the trigger.

Wood grips and a blued Smith just flat go together IMHO. But that said a set of rubber grips sure make the heavy .357 rounds a lot more fun to shoot. And may help improve accuracy also.
I have nice wooden factory grips for all of my Smiths but have rubber grips for range time. Just something to think about.

I prefer the Nickel finish ...on my model 19's ...( its a K frame if you didn't know )

As far as grips go ....the standard "target grips" come both checkered and smooth / up thru the model 19-7 the model 19's should all be Square Butt...so when you're looking for K frame grips ...look for SQ Butt.

S&W also made some upgraded K frame grips - in wood - with finger grooves in them....

In my area....standard wood Target Grips - K frame - are about $ 60 on the used market in good shape. The finger groove wood grips are harder to find...and can be $ 100 - $ 125 in very good shape. My local gunshows always have a lot of S&W wood revolver grips ....guys are looking to get rid of the rubber grips that came on some models and replace them with the wood.
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You can also strip and refinish the grips you have now....its a pretty easy project...they could be Walnut or Goncalvo Alves ( as far as the wood type) ...but both woods finish really easily. If I wanted to refinish them ..I'
d strip them with some kind of commercial stripper...sand them a little to clean them up if they have deep scratches / maybe steam out some dents
....I'd want to match the color as close as I could to the original ...a product like Watco's Danish Oil ( is really a varnish ) but it'll give you some depth to the wood grain ...and then put a satin or gloss lacquer over it ...like Deft lacquer either with a brush or a spray.

The originals aren't scratched as much as they are chipped at the bottom of them. I may try a gun show and see if I can find some old used ones. I like the way the factory grips feel. I normally shoot 38 spl through it and don't mind the recoil of 357 at all so rubber grips aren't really necessary as much as grips that I can get a good purchase of.

I bought a Model 19-3, and it came with rubber combat grips. I ended up buying a set of beat to death factory grips off ebay. The gun has a lot of wear to the finish, so it fits the personality of the gun. Check around eBay, and you'll probably find something. I would try to keep it under $50-$75, depending on your income and the gun's finish condition. If your gun has some wear, maybe try to find some grips with some scuffs and beat marks on it.

Model 19's in my circles seem to go for no less than $450 (lots of wear or dings that might drop the price) to $650 or higher for extremely nice examples, and I'm not talking about anything unfired or with original box & trinkets.

A Model 66 would typically carry a premium over a Model 19 if the date of production and all else were otherwise similar.

Bottom line--unless you are quite fortunate and hit the right place/right time, I don't see you picking up a Model 66 that's in really nice shape for anywhere under $500, and the $600+ area sounds more likely.

That's what I see in my area.

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